Words At Large

To many, Martin Amis might seem more of an aging rock star than a world-class author. His life is often the subject of news stories, from his very public relationships with women and agents to the size of his advances, and his controversial statements on racial profiling.

Regarded by many critics as one of the most influential and innovative voices in contemporary British fiction, Amis is often grouped with the generation of British-based novelists that emerged during the 1980s, which includes Salman Rushdie, Ian McEwan and Julian Barnes. His career spans three decades, 10 novels, six books of non-fiction, two short story collections and nearly 400 reviews and essays.

Son of the writer Kingsley Amis, he first made his appearance on the literary scene in 1973 with The Rachel Papers (Vintage Canada). His most recent book, The Second Plane: September 11: Terror and Boredom (Knopf Canada), briefly revived a controversy sparked by his earlier, inflammatory comments about the Muslim community.

Eleanor Wachtel spoke with Amis in London in 2007, just before he was setting out on an American tour. They started by talking about House of Meetings (Vintage Canada) and then moved into the memoir Experience (Vintage Canada), as well as some of the more personal aspects of his life and work, particularly his relationship with his father.

Listen to part one of their conversation here:

First aired January 28, 2007 on Writers & Company. [runs 52:48]

Their conversation continues next week on Writers & Company, on Sunday, July 7.

Through the summer, different episodes of Writers & Company will air on Sundays and Thursdays. On July 3, listen to an interview with British author Pat Barker, who is up for the Best of the Booker prize. The winner will be announced on July 10.